Speed cameras in the US National Parks

John Roberts

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I passed a speed limit sign in Sequoia NP a couple of weeks ago, it had a display on it showing my speed in orange and as I got closer it flashed a couple of white lights just like a camera flash. It sure as hell looked as if it took my photo. How long would it take for me to be notified?

One straw that I'm clutching at is that the sign was yellow and square and possibly advisory rather than an actual limit.
 
In the UK the chances are very slight that you will ever hear again, unless you go to a natiional park or Sequoia in which case you may find yourself in deep poo with a lot of explaining to do.
 
Minor violations are hardly recognised from one state to another, but if you are a US citizen caught speeding you better show up in court whatever county or state the crime was committed.
 
In the UK the chances are very slight that you will ever hear again, unless you go to a natiional park or Sequoia in which case you may find yourself in deep poo with a lot of explaining to do.
Be off with you, you little rascal you. :D
 
They are very hot in NP's and throw the book at you if cought even a smidge over the limit. I think they are warning cameras as our American friends really don't approve of "safety cameras" and most end up being used as target practice.

Most speeding is dealt with on the spot by Troopers who love relieving you of a few beer tokens and putting you on the naughty step.

I've not heard that they are doing people but remember if you are in a hire car, they have for CC number........:eek:
 
Radar speed signs here are almost always just warnings. Personally I've never come across or heard of them being used in Parks but maybe they are in some cases now. They do set them up in construction zones once in a while but always have signs notifying "speed camera enforced".

Rangers in some of the busier Parks like Great Smokey, Yellowstone, etc can nit pick you for 5+ mph over so I generally keep my speed under 5mph over there. Usually there's enough traffic plodding along anyway. In parks like Blue Ridge Pky, and Natchez Trace with 45 mph limits i generally ride 55-60, but speed up accordingly on corners of course, and I've not been stopped in years. In fact this year on the Natchez Trace I set the cruise at 59 (GPS) and the few rangers I saw never gave me a second glance.
Unless it's recently changed the nice thing for us is tickets issued by the National Park Service don't report to our respective state agency so no points on our license.
 
Thank you all for the replies. Clifton, I was rather hoping you as an American would be replying as well. So, on balance, I'm feeling a little more optimistic about the outcome of my little indiscretion but reserve the right to totally change that opinion in the event that I get nailed within the next few weeks ...

Another thing I should mention is that the Park had closed at the time, well- I say "closed"- what I mean is that it was late evening and the booths at the entrances were unmanned and were not collecting Park entrance fees.
 
Uh oh they'll nail you for entering without payment too! :D

Seriously though I'd like to know if they did in fact have an active camera in their radar sign so post back if you get a ticket. You wouldn't get any points on your license regardless, right?
 
Uh oh they'll nail you for entering without payment too! :D

Seriously though I'd like to know if they did in fact have an active camera in their radar sign so post back if you get a ticket. You wouldn't get any points on your license regardless, right?
Nah, we had that pass that covered us for all the National Parks for a year (and thank you Jockser for the suggestion in my "Los Angeles" thread; it was a bargain at $80 if I remember correctly :thumb2), it was just that we enjoyed the park so much we were an hour or two late leaving.

As for feedback, OK, I'll let you know, but it wasn't the usual (white?) radar warning sign, it was square, yellow with the speed limit (or hopefully the suggested speed) in black and with my actual speed in flashing amber numbers displayed below. In between there were what appeared to be the two bluish-white photo flash lights that went off as I approached. The speed limit, my speed, and the flash units were all on the square yellow panel, I think the square might have been with its corners pointing up and down, like a diamond, if you know what I mean.

Oh, and thanks for the reassurance re the points, very glad to hear it! :)
 
Nah, we had that pass that covered us for all the National Parks for a year (and thank you Jockser for the suggestion in my "Los Angeles" thread; it was a bargain at $80 if I remember correctly :thumb2), it was just that we enjoyed the park so much we were an hour or two late leaving.

As for feedback, OK, I'll let you know, but it wasn't the usual (white?) radar warning sign, it was square, yellow with the speed limit (or hopefully the suggested speed) in black and with my actual speed in flashing amber numbers displayed below. In between there were what appeared to be the two bluish-white photo flash lights that went off as I approached. The speed limit, my speed, and the flash units were all on the square yellow panel, I think the square might have been with its corners pointing up and down, like a diamond, if you know what I mean.

Oh, and thanks for the reassurance re the points, very glad to hear it! :)

What you describe sounds like a warning sign only and is not used for enforcement. Bright white LED's flash once you hit a certain threshold (usually the posted limit) to catch your attention along with your measured speed. These warning signs are usually temporarily placed in areas with high motor vehicle collision rates or where speeding is common to deter drivers and slow traffic down. Actual photo radar is often hard to spot and can be mounted in unmarked stationary vehicles or placed on poles. I stand to be corrected but have not heard of it being used in national parks.
 
UPDATE

Just back from storming the National Parks once again, and delighted to be able to report that I was not slung the slammer for my past indiscretions and that I am still a free man. I have found a photo of the very camera/warning/advisory road sign at the exit of the Sequoia NP off Google Earth, have a look if you will at:
https://www.google.com/maps/@36.488...COE2PQYNBYjSq_04w!2e0!7i13312!8i6656?hl=en-US
which isn't quite the way I remembered it, and as Clifton and CdnGS suggested it seems it wasn't an actual speed camera after all. It was sited on a bend in the road on the way out of the park just before the entrance booths at the South West of the park and was intended to slow traffic down to an appropriate speed.

PS when I said "storming the National Parks" (see above) what I meant was that I (well, we- my wife and myself) saw loads of them rather than meaning that I sped through them. And, boy, they are indeed brilliant, when we left one we thought that they just couldn't get any better, until we saw the next one... Brilliant. From memory, the sequence was, after flying into Denver: Rocky Mountain National Park > Yellowstone > Grand Tetons > Zion > Bryce Canyon > Reef > Canyonlands > Arches after which I'm getting puddled due to the sheer volume of memories and possibly the heat. Yellowstone (8,000 ft plus) in mid Sept, expected to be in the mid-sixties, was 91 when we were there, and a week after they had a foot of snow with roads closed and minus 4. Lucky or what?

Thank you all for your help.:)
 
Now you have me wanting to get out to see them again! Glad you enjoyed your visit and didn't get any tickets!
 


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